Hotel California is the fifth studio album by the American rock band the Eagles, and is one of the best-selling albums of all time.The Eagles took 18 months between their fourth and fifth albums, reportedly spending eight months in the studio recording Hotel California. The album was also their first to be made without Bernie Leadon, who had given the band much of its country flavor, and with rock guitarist Joe Walsh. As a result, the album marks a major leap for the Eagles from their earlier work, as well as a stylistic shift toward mainstream rock. An even more important aspect, however, is the emergence of Don Henley as the band’s dominant voice, both as a singer and a lyricist. On the six songs to which he contributes, Henley sketches a thematic statement that begins by using California as a metaphor for a dark, surreal world of dissipation; comments on the ephemeral nature of success and the attraction of excess; branches out into romantic disappointment; and finally sketches a broad, pessimistic history of America that borders on nihilism. Of course, the lyrics kick in some time after one has appreciated the album’s music, which marks a peak in the Eagles’ playing. Early on, the group couldn’t rock convincingly, but the rhythm section of Henley and Meisner has finally solidified, and the electric guitar work of Don Felder and Joe Walsh has arena-rock heft. In the early part of their career, the Eagles never seemed to get a sound big enough for their ambitions; after changes in producer and personnel, as well as a noticeable growth in creativity, Hotel California unveiled what seemed almost like a whole new band. It was a band that could be bombastic, but also one that made music worthy of the later tag of “classic rock,” music appropriate for the arenas and stadiums the band was playing. The result was the Eagles’ biggest-selling regular album release, and one of the most successful rock albums ever.
The album was recorded by Bill Szymczyk at the Criteria and Record Plant studios between March and October 1976, and then released on Asylum in December. It was their first album with guitarist Joe Walsh, who had replaced founding member Bernie Leadon, and is the last album to feature bassist Randy Meisner. The front cover is a photograph of the Beverly Hills Hotel by David Alexander. The album topped the charts and won the band two Grammy Awards for “Hotel California” and “New Kid in Town“.
Three singles were released from the album, each reaching high in the Billboard Hot 100: “New Kid in Town” (No. 1), “Hotel California” (No. 1), and “Life in the Fast Lane” (No. 11). The album was ranked number 37 on Rolling Stone‘s list of “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time“.

Side one
1. Hotel California (6:30)
2. New Kid in Town (5:03)
3. Life in the Fast Lane (4:46)
4. Wasted Time (4:55)

Side two
1. Wasted Time (Reprise)” (instrumental) (1:22)
2. Victim of Love (4:11)
3. Pretty Maids All in a Row (3:58)
4. Try and Love Again (5:10)
5. The Last Resort (7:28)

Three years in the making (which was considered an eternity in the ’70s), the Eagles‘ follow-up to the massively successful, critically acclaimed Hotel California was a major disappointment, even though it sold several million copies and threw off three hit singles. Those singles, in fact, provide some insight into the record. “Heartache Tonight” was an old-fashioned rock & roll song sung by Glenn Frey, while “I Can’t Tell You Why” was a delicate ballad by Timothy B. Schmit, the band’s newest member. Only “The Long Run,” a conventional pop/rock tune with a Stax Records R&B flavor, bore the stamp and vocal signature of Don Henley, who had largely taken the reins of the band on Hotel California. Henley also dominated The Long Run, getting co-writing credits on nine of the ten songs, singing five lead vocals, and sharing another two with Frey. This time around, however, Henley‘s contributions were for the most part painfully slight. Only “The Long Run” and the regret-filled closing song, “The Sad Café,” showed any of his usual craftsmanship. The album was dominated by second-rank songs like “The Disco Strangler,” “King of Hollywood,” and “Teenage Jail” that sounded like they couldn’t have taken three hours much less three years to come up with. (Joe Walsh‘s “In the City” was up to his usual standard, but it may not even have been an Eagles recording, having appeared months earlier on the soundtrack to The Warriors, where it was credited as a Walsh solo track.) Amazingly, The Long Run reportedly was planned as a double album before being truncated to a single disc. If these were the keepers, what could the rejects have sounded like?

Side one
1. The Long Run (3:42)
2. I Can’t Tell You Why (4:56)
3. In The City (3:46)
4. The Disco Strangler (2:46)
5. King Of Hollywood (6:28)

One of These Nights is the last Eagles album to feature guitarist Bernie Leadon; who was later replaced by Joe Walsh. Leadon left the band after the One Of These Nights tour. The seventh track, “Visions”, is the only Eagles song on which lead guitarist Don Felder sang the lead vocals, despite a desire to write and sing more songs. The album was the band’s commercial breakthrough album, transforming them into international superstars and establishing them as America’s number one band. The band went on a worldwide tour to promote the album.

The cover for the album is an image of an artwork by Boyd Elder, also known as “El Chingadero”. Elder created artwork of painted skulls in the early 1970s, and pieces of his work, titled “American Fetish”, were exhibited in an art gallery in Venice, California in 1972

Side one
1. One Of These Nights (4:51)
2. Too Many Hands (4:42)
3. Hollywood Waltz (4:04)
4. Journey Of The Sorcerer (6:39)

Side two
1. Lyin’ Eyes (6:21)
2. Take It To The Limit (4:48)
3. Visions (4:00)
4. After The Thrill Is Gone (3:58)
5. I Wish You Peace (3:45)